This invention relates to a system for pivoting a mast and the sail thereon by providing a pivoting mast step so that lateral adjustment of the rig may be achieved.
One of the interesting features that has come from sail board sailing is found in the tilting mast arrangement whereby the mast is essentially supported by a swivel on the deck of the board and may be rotated in any direction. In sailing a board, it has been noticed that if one rocks the mast to windward, the heeling moment that is created by the sail may be changed to an upward lift. This is in contrast to a conventional boat with a fixed mast where the whole structure of the mast and the vessel lean to leeward and there is a speed penalty taken because of the extra downward pressure by the sail.
Some attempts at pivoting masts are seen in the prior art. For example, a spar is pivoted to an upright post in Blackman U.S. Pat. No. 1,916,459 and Ross U.S. Pat. No. 4,345,535, while the classical sail board is seen in Schweitzer U.S. Pat. No. Re. 31,167.